For replacement with an artificial tooth via dental diagnosis in a dental clinic, the shape of the original tooth is typically captured by the dentist and then delivered to a dental laboratory. More specifically, the tooth model is formed based on the shape of the original tooth in the dental laboratory, scanned and imaged, and such an image is input to a computer, after which a block for molding an artificial tooth is fixed and processed using a small CNC (CAD/CAM) device, as a processing device, and then the processed tooth is heat treated, thus yielding an artificial tooth.
As for the processing device, such as a CNC device, a transfer table having a drill fixed thereto is moved upward/downward and leftward/rightward in accordance with the image input to the computer so that the block for molding an artificial tooth is processed. In this case, the block is processed to be larger than the actual tooth size and reduced in a heat treatment process. The artificial tooth thus completed is delivered again to the dental clinic and thus applied to the corresponding patient.
However, the block for molding an artificial tooth, which is conventionally manufactured, shows a color that is not similar to that of the natural tooth adjacent thereto after impregnation with the coloring solution, and thus, the artificial tooth is visibly distinguishable from the other teeth after application, undesirably causing a poor outer appearance.
In general, natural teeth are not completely white, with a dark yellow color at the root portion of the tooth and a degree of whiteness increasing with increasing distance from the root portion. Since individual patients have varying tooth colors, what is required is a block for molding an artificial tooth that shows a color similar to that of the natural teeth of the corresponding patient after impregnation with the coloring solution.